Erling Haaland was 'one that got away for Everton' as Man City close in on transfer deal

Manchester City look set to bolster their attacking ranks with a mega money move for Erling Haaland this summer. Pep Guardiola's pursuit of the striker has long been rumoured, and the Daily Mail claims that terms have now been agreed with representatives of the player.

City are apparently poised to trigger the £63million release clause Haaland has in place with Borussia Dortmund, and land the 21-year-old forward with a salary that will break the £500,000 a week mark.

The Mail article published late last night says: "City have remained quietly confident throughout the process and are now closing in on the prolific forward manager Pep Guardiola craves. If all goes according to plan, what is likely to be a five-year deal should be sealed in the next week or so."

As with many stories and journeys in football, things could have worked out differently for Haaland. And when he was a teenager, his path crossed with Everton.

Haaland started out in his native Norway with Bryne FK, a club he joined at the age of five.

He would go on to progress through the ranks at Bryne before breaking into the first team at the tender age of 15, his abundant talent already clear to the staff at the third tier outfit.

His progress had already been noted by another interested observer, too, someone who had been keeping tabs on his exploits in the reserves and then the senior side.

After a career as a goalkeeper in English football in the 1970s with the likes of Chelmsford City, Millwall and Coventry City, Brian King pitched up in Norway and went into management with clubs such as FK Jerv, Harstad, Tynset, Rendalen and Kongsberg, where he lives, before being appointed as Everton's talent spotter in Scandanavia.

Decades in Norway saw him develop